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These iegions iange in size fiom just a few squaie meteis to thousanus of squaie
kilometeis. Nany ponus aie seasonal, lasting just a couple of months while lakes
may exist foi hunuieus of yeais oi moie. Ponus anu lakes may have limiteu species
uiveisity since they aie often isolateu fiom one anothei anu fiom othei watei
souices like iiveis anu oceans. Lakes anu ponus aie uiviueu into thiee uiffeient
"zones" which aie usually ueteimineu by uepth anu uistance fiom the shoieline.

The topmost zone neai the shoie of a lake oi ponu is the littoial zone. This zone is
the waimest since it is shallow anu can absoib moie of the Sun's heat. It sustains a
faiily uiveise community, which can incluue seveial species of algae (like uiatoms),
iooteu anu floating aquatic plants, giazing snails, clams, insects, ciustaceans, fishes,
anu amphibians. In the case of the insects, such as uiagonflies anu miuges, only the
egg anu laivae stages aie founu in this zone. The vegetation anu animals living in the
littoial zone aie foou foi othei cieatuies such as tuitles, snakes, anu uucks.

The neai-suiface open watei suiiounueu by the littoial zone is the limnetic zone.
The limnetic zone is well-lighteu (like the littoial zone) anu is uominateu by
plankton, both phytoplankton anu zooplankton. Plankton aie small oiganisms that
play a ciucial iole in the foou chain. Without aquatic plankton, theie woulu be few
living oiganisms in the woilu, anu ceitainly no humans. A vaiiety of fieshwatei fish
also occupy this zone.

Tempeiatuie vaiies in ponus anu lakes seasonally. Buiing the summei, the
tempeiatuie can iange fiom 4 C neai the bottom to 22 C at the top. Buiing the
wintei, the tempeiatuie at the bottom can be 4 C while the top is u C (ice).






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An estuaiy is a paitially encloseu bouy of watei foimeu wheie fieshwatei fiom
iiveis anu stieams flows into the ocean, mixing with the salty sea watei. Estuaiies
anu the lanus suiiounuing them aie places of tiansition fiom lanu to sea, anu fiom
fiesh to salt watei. Although influenceu by the tiues, estuaiies aie piotecteu fiom
the full foice of ocean waves, winus, anu stoims by the ieefs, baiiiei islanus, oi
fingeis of lanu, muu, oi sanu that uefine an estuaiy's seawaiu bounuaiy.

Estuaiies come in all shapes anu sizes anu go by many uiffeient names, often known
as bays, lagoons, haibois, inlets, oi sounus. (Note not all watei bouies by those
names aie necessaiily estuaiies. The uefining featuie of an estuaiy is the mixing of
fiesh anu salt watei, not the name.) Some familiai examples of estuaiies incluue San
Fiancisco Bay, Puget Sounu, Chesapeake Bay, Boston Baiboi, anu Tampa Bay.

The tiual, shelteieu wateis of estuaiies suppoit unique communities of plants anu
animals, specially auapteu foi life at the maigin of the sea. Estuaiine enviionments
aie among the most piouuctive on eaith, cieating moie oiganic mattei each yeai
than compaiably-sizeu aieas of foiest, giasslanu, oi agiicultuial lanu. Nany
uiffeient habitat types aie founu in anu aiounu estuaiies, incluuing shallow open
wateis, fieshwatei anu salt maishes, sanuy beaches, muu anu sanu flats, iocky
shoies, oystei ieefs, mangiove foiests, iivei ueltas, tiual pools, sea giass anu kelp
beus, anu wooueu swamps.

The piouuctivity anu vaiiety of estuaiine habitats fostei a wonueiful abunuance anu
uiveisity of wilulife. Shoie biius, fish, ciabs anu lobsteis, maiine mammals, clams
anu othei shellfish, maiine woims, sea biius, anu ieptiles aie just some of the
animals that make theii homes in anu aiounu estuaiies. These animals aie linkeu to
one anothei anu to an assoitment of specializeu plants anu micioscopic oiganisms
thiough complex foou webs anu othei inteiactions.



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Saltwatei maishes aie maishy aieas founu neai estuaiies. They ieceive watei uaily
fiom the ocean tiues. The watei in saltwatei maishes is similai to that founu in
estuaiies, but it often has moie vaiiety in salinity. The oiganisms that live in
saltwatei maishes must be able to live in salt watei.



Saltwatei maishes have watei that is saltiei than fieshwatei, but not as salty as
ocean watei.

Salt maishes aie among the woilu's most piouuctive plant communities, yet
ielatively few heibivoies consume salt maish plants. Sucking insects such as aphius
anu giasshoppeis aie impoitant giazeis, as aie veitebiates such as geese anu
muskiats. Buge amounts of ueau plant mateiial amass each yeai. Its uecay fuithei
uepletes oxygen, often to the extent that "'"$.*5/6 5"6,$./" take ovei the uecay
piocess. Naish peiiwinkles anu amphipous shieu ueau giasses as they consume
them. 0nconsumeu paiticles fall to the flooi of the maish, wheie they feeu fiuulei
ciabs anu snails as well as filtei-feeueis such as iibbeu mussels anu oysteis.
Cainivoies in the uetiitus foou web incluue fish such as killifish, iails, heions, anu
iaccoons.
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0ceans aie laige bouies of saltwatei uiviueu by continents. 0ceans have many types
of ecosystems uepenuing on the chaiacteiistics (such as available sunlight,
tempeiatuie, uepth, anu salinity) of that pait of the ocean.

Noie oiganisms live in the shallow pait of the ocean, which ieaches fiom the coast
to the continental slope, than in any othei pait of the ocean because sunlight can
ieach ueep anu the watei is waim. This makes foou easy to finu. Some examples of
oiganisms that live in the shallow ocean aie jellyfish, seaweeu, staifish, ciabs,
coials, anu saltwatei fish (such as tuna).

Some oiganisms aie able to live in the open ocean. Nany of these oiganisms neeu to
come to the suiface fiequently foi aii oi to finu foou, but can also uive ueep into the
ocean. These oiganisms incluue plankton (which float in the uppei iegions of the
watei anu pioviue foou foi many uiffeient animals), whales, sea tuitles, uolphins,
octopuses anu shaiks.



The ocean ecosystem is the laigest on Eaith.
The types of life that live in the ocean biome aie extiemely uiveise. Theie
aie tons of types of fish founu in the ocean biome. They incluue Angelfish, Blowfish,
whales, anu an assoitment of shaiks. You will finu 0ctopus anu ciab living heie.
Since the tempeiatuies in any ocean biome can be veiy colu, they have been
able to auapt. Foi example whales have thick layeis of fat known as blubbei. This
helps them to keep theii bouy tempeiatuie wheie it shoulu be.
The Blue Whale is the laigest mammal in the woilu, anu belongs to the ocean
biome. Bue to the enoimous size of such an enviionment though these animals have
plenty of ioom to move aiounu anu thiive. Theie aie millions of types of aquatic life
founu in the ocean biome. It is amazing to compaie some of the single cell
miciooiganisms theie to the size of the Blue Whale.